Social Media Profiles – Company or Personal?

A few years ago, I struggled with how to incorporate business profiles and personal profiles. I went as far as having my picture and logo on the same profile picture. Then, I became nervous about whether I should talk more from a personal standpoint or a business standpoint and would people really listen. I also tried mixing company profiles and personal profiles on pages and pictures and I struggled with what type of content to share.

The I watched my numbers and I was sadly disappointed in the returns I was seeing in Google Analytics. Then I finally realized what was going on. I was confused and my message was confusing. “I was not myself” – Why would anyone want to engage with me or find my information interesting.

It was at this moment that I decided to have TWO Separate, Distinct profiles on social media.

The reason for company profile:

People need to see your company brand and know that your company is active on social media.

People want to know more about what happens at companies. (Transparency)

People will connect with you on a business relationship and are not looking to engage about personal experiences.

People still wonder who the person is behind the company profile. It’s how people are wired.

Why would a company want to become personal? (This can be a dangerous path, Be safe! It’s your company brand! )

The reason for personal profile:

Puts a face with a company.

Brings a live person both professionally and personally.

People connect more with people. (This is what Google Analytics showed me in a big way.)

You can attract a broad audience or specific audience.

By having two distinct profiles, I can direct my time in a more efficient manner. The company profile can post information on different sites and talk specifically about news affecting the company. In addition, by having a personal id, I have the flexibility to refer to my company and also talk to other marketing professionals. It offers so much more and you can be more in control of the audience you are speaking to.

The power of two profiles has worked very nicely for me and as the number from Google Analytics show, traffic for each profile continue to grow quite nicely.